Raiders NFL Draft Prospect Spotlight: Baron Browning
We’ve now reached the week of the 2021 NFL Draft, and that means there are only a few days left until one of the biggest events of the NFL calendar begins.
That also means there are only a few days left to preview the prospects who could potentially be the difference in the Las Vegas Raiders being a playoff team this season.
We focused on the linebacker position with Georgia’s Monty Rice previously, and we’ll stay there with Ohio State linebacker Baron Browning.
A five-star recruit coming out of high school, it actually took Browning multiple seasons before the Buckeyes were able to find a role that suited him best.
Browning had shown flashes in the past, like when he had career highs in sacks and tackles for losses with five and 11, respectively, in 2019.
But 2020 would go down as his best-rated season, as evaluated by Pro Football Focus, although it still wasn’t that high at 71.2.
Even without great ratings, Browning has a physical skill set that, if you look hard enough, can conjure up the image of heralded prospect Micah Parsons’ in comparison.
Like Parsons, Browning has the size, at 6-3 and 240 pounds, and speed combination that teams covet at the position.
He also has shown an ability to win one-on-one against offensive tackles, making his skill on the edge an intriguing aspect of his game.
Browning can bring a lot of punishment downhill as a tackler, and scouts noted that he significantly improved his play speed and recognition in 2020.
Even with those improvements, scouts still would say overall that Browning is a very reactionary player who has struggled to make traditional linebacker reads.
That lack of anticipation made him a liability at times in Ohio State’s defense.
If he can continue to improve on that, and maybe if whatever team takes him uses him more on the edge, he has the tools to be a plus playmaker in the NFL.
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